Who are Rhode Island's best boys lacrosse teams? Here's how Eric Rueb ranked them this week

We know what’s going on in Division I. Division III has a hands down favorite. Division II and IV couldn’t be more competitive.

Welcome to the 2024 boys lacrosse season.

Three weeks in and the storylines are apparent, but a lot can change – minus the goings-on in D-I – between now and the end of the season.

As we near the midway point, it’s clear D-II and IV couldn’t be more fun. Six of the teams in D-II look championship capable and at least four of the teams can say the same in D-IV. Teams are only going to get better and if no one’s going to make a move now, it might now happen.

With the season rolling on, we’re continuing to ask the state’s lacrosse coaches to send in results. As a whole lacrosse is doing OK with getting results in, but it needs to be better. This week, offending parties that do no send in results will be identified.

How do you report results? It’s easy.

The home team coach – or, if the coaches agree prior to the game, the winning coach – can call information in to the Journal before 10 p.m. the night of the game at 401-277-7340, or email them to PJSports@ProvidenceJournal.com

Lacrosse info is simple. We need the final score, the top three players – usually the goal scorers – from the winning team and at least one from the losing team. If there’s a game-winning goal or big stretch that helped decide the final outcome, include that as well.

We wanted to do player of the week for lacrosse, but the low percentage of reported scores made it impossible and, with the midway point of the season here, it’s not going to happen. Would have been fun, but we’ll try again next year.

But we still have enough information to put together weekly rankings, as we have all season. Here’s how we see the top four teams in each division – and these could be changing in a hurry with the big games we have on tap.

Journal Boys Lacrosse Week 3 Power Rankings – Division I

1. La Salle (6-0 Division I)

How can the Rams stay competitive? Short of Steve O’Donnell spotting opponents 10 or forcing his team to play man down the whole game, it’s tough to think of a way. The first game La Salle has been waiting for takes place Tuesday at home when it hosts Moses Brown and the Rams close the week Saturday morning at home against Mount St. Charles.

2. Moses Brown (5-0 Division I)

Spring break was a good one for the Quakers, who came up with a tough win over Hendricken before taking down East Greenwich. Tuesday will be a big test and while Moses Brown would love to beat La Salle, learning what it needs to do so it can beat the Rams in the big game at the end of the year is almost more important. After playing their rivals, the Quakers host Portsmouth on Friday.

3. Hendricken (4-2 Division I)

While the Hawks didn’t get a win over Moses Brown, its clear the gap between the programs has closed. Hendricken bounced back from the L with a win over Mount and has two great games this week against teams that will be coming in hungry. The Hawks host North Kingstown on Tuesday and travel to take on Barrington Thursday night.

4. Barrington (2-3 Division I)

The Eagles beat North Kingstown in their lone game this week and as they start to get healthy and come together, it’s clear they could end up in the mix for the title game by the end of the season. Barrington hosts two games this week, welcoming Portsmouth to town on Tuesday before Hendricken shows up Thursday and both games should be huge for playoff seeding.

Simmering: North Kingstown (2-3)

Journal Boys Lacrosse Week 3 Power Rankings – Division II

1. Cranston West (4-0 Division II)

Looks like it’s the Falcons’ turn to sit atop the ranks this week. After picking up wins over Cumberland and Middletown last week, Cranston West is the last undefeated team standing in the division. Will it remain that way for long? The Falcons have three tough home games this week hosting Pilgrim on Tuesday, Prout on Thursday and Chariho on Saturday.

2. Prout (4-1 Division II)

After losing their first game of the season, the Crusaders bounced back with a win over Chariho and still look like they’re heading in the right direction. Prout has a tricky week and Monday’s game at Coventry screams trap game with a matchup at undefeated Cranston West taking play on Thursday evening.

3. Cumberland (2-3 Division II)

The Clippers opened last week with a loss to Cranston West, but gutted out a tough win over South Kingstown, giving them two victories in their previous three games. Cumberland’s opening schedule was brutal, but things will get easier as the season rolls along and expect Ws to pile up. The Clippers have two games this week, hosting Middletown on Monday and Pilgrim on Thursday.

4. South Kingstown (3-2 Division II)

If the Rebels’ closed the week with a win over Cumberland, it would have been No. 2 this week but the loss dropped them to No. 4. There’s really no nights off in Division II and SK has won its three games by a combined six goals and its two losses were by three combined goals. The Rebels will be busy this week, hitting the road Tuesday at Chariho and Thursday at Middletown before hosting Coventry on Saturday.

Simmering: Pilgrim (3-2), Chariho (3-3)

Journal Boys Lacrosse Week 3 Power Rankings – Division III

1. Westerly (5-0 Division III)

The big dogs in Division III continued to play that way, getting a 10-goal win over Toll Gate to remain undefeated. The Bulldogs are doing everything right so far this season but cannot stay complacent. This week Westerly will travel to face an aggressive Burrillville squad on Tuesday before playing at Smithfield in a road game that could decide the top spot for the postseason.

2. Smithfield (5-1 Division III)

Going from D-IV powerhouse to D-III powerhouse is no small feat and the Sentinels are now trying to get themselves a title before the eventual move to D-II. Smithfield grabbed two good wins over Burrillville and Mt. Hope last week and have three games this week. The Sentinels can’t overlook road games at Narragansett Monday and at Ponaganset Wednesday, but Thursday’s home game against Westerly is the big one.

3. Mt. Hope (2-2 Division III)

Here’s a team to keep an eye on. Sitting at .500 doesn’t get you noticed, but with those two loses being the two best teams in the division, the Huskies are quietly off to a pretty good start to the season. This will be a week to prove as much as Mt. Hope plays at home against Toll Gate on Tuesday and welcomes Burrillville in on Friday.

4. Narragansett (4-2 Division III)

Perhaps the Mariners deserved the No. 3 slot after two wins last week, but one of their losses this season was to Mt. Hope so this spot is probably right – for now. Narragansett is a strong program and can contend in this division, but needs to stay on path. The Mariners have two games this week, with Monday’s home game a big one before they host Toll Gate on Thursday.

Simmering: Toll Gate (2-3 Division III)

Journal Boys Lacrosse Week 3 Power Rankings – Division IV

1. Scituate (5-1 Division IV)

Don’t look now, but here come the Spartans. Scituate hasn’t lost since Caito Field’s re-opening and in this four-game win streak, three have been at home – including’s Friday’s shocking dismantling of North Smithfield. The Spartans have two games this week, traveling to take on East Providence Monday before welcoming North Providence into the Terrordome.

2. North Smithfield (5-1 Division IV)

Wednesday’s thrilling five overtime win over then-undefeated Lincoln came with some consequences, as the Northmen were hit with their first L of the season Friday against Scituate. North Smithfield needs to bounce back and it’ll have two road games this week to do it, playing at North Providence Monday and at Rogers on Thursday.

3. Lincoln (3-1 Division IV)

The Lions lost a battle last Wednesday to North Smithfield, but they can still win the war. Lincoln’s biggest foe this week will be its own mental approach and if it can put last week’s loss behind it, there shouldn’t be any trouble. The Lions play two this week, hosting Rogers on Monday night before a tough road game on Friday at Tiverton.

4. Tiverton (1-2 Division IV)

There might not be a better 1-2 team in RI than the Tigers, who picked up their first win of the season last Tuesday and are in a spot where they could start heating up and surprising some of the big dogs in D-IV. This week would be the time to do it, as Tiverton travels to play the Cranston/Johnson co-op before hosting East Providence Wednesday before finishing things off with the big game of the week at home against Lincoln.

Simmering – Rogers (2-1 Division IV)

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Rhode Island top boys lacrosse teams in the RIIL after week 3